subtitled: Preparing For A Criminal Crisis In Orbit. And this subtitle is very important, as while the authors acknowledge that piracy in space is not a serious problem yet, it certainly has the potential to be so in the not too distant future.

With humanity’s increasing exploration of space beyond our atmosphere, it’s almost inevitable that crime will follow. And not just the usual crimes of passion one can expect, but crime for profit, including the types of piracy common terrestrially. This isn’t just the historical picture of scallywags boarding a ship and taking the booty for themselves but also includes the hijacking of satellites by drones or other means that don’t require a physical human presence in outer space. An Intelsat satellite was taken over by Sri Lankan Tamil separatists, for example, to broadcast their propaganda in 2007, leading to a small but significant international incident, with fascinating ramifications for international law going forward.

In that sense, space piracy is already happening, and Marc Feldman and Hugh Taylor use this book to explore not only the current state of affairs but the likely trajectory along which criminality will continue to develop. For grounding, they include an illuminating look at piracy through the ages, to give readers unfamiliar with the history a better idea of how surprisingly crucial it has been to the rise and fall of nations. Ofc, law enforcement has grown in step with the criminals it pursues, but the authors argue that following established maritime law, for example, as precedent for dealing with space crimes is still a case of shutting the stable door after the horse has already bolted. Better for us to be proactive about regulating lawful behavior and its inverse, and establishing jurisdiction — or, as its stated better in this book, first principles and onward — so we can be prepared for when the worst happens.

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